Another one goes to Allah

The New York Times has an article by Adam Ellick about the latest suicide bomber in Afghanistan:

A suicide bomber driving a pickup truck detonated his payload of explosives in a hotel parking lot used by NATO trucks, killing four Afghan drivers, injuring eight others, and destroying twelve vehicles in Helmand Province on Friday night, Afghan officials said. The attack is believed to be among the first in Afghanistan targeting a stationary convoy, and comes several weeks after Taliban leaders boldly threatened to unveil new tactics over the summer to counter an increase in American troops in this increasingly violent war.
The Taliban, who claimed responsibility for the attack in the northern area of Gereshk district, said the attack killed 33 security guards and burned 17 vehicles, mostly fuel tankers. “The man who carried out the blessed duty against those who help the occupying troops was named Abdul Aziz from Helmand,” said a Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf Ahmadi. “In the future, we will continue to target convoys and those who escort and drive them,” he said.
A NATO official said that Friday’s attack will have “absolutely no effect on our supplies”, because the forces possess ample storage supplies around the country. “We have so many different ways of getting into the country,” said the official, who requested anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the press.
As the American-led war intensifies in this landlocked nation, and as security in Pakistan deteriorates, the issue of supply lines has become a source of concern. More than three-quarters of the supplies for NATO and American troops in Afghanistan flow through Pakistan, and attacks aimed at choking off supply routes were especially frequent and brazen in late 2008 and early 2009.
In a high-profile attack in December, militants blasted a NATO fleet consisting of 300 cargo trucks and humvees in Pakistan. International forces have been trying to develop reliable alternative routes amid fears that Russia could restrict access through Uzbekistan and Tajikistan en route to Afghanistan. The possible loss of a critical air base in Kyrgyzstan has also escalated the search for alternate routes.

Rico says that, unfortunately, these weasels are being born faster than they can get old enough to blow themselves up, so some other solution will have to be found...